Letter: Fluoridation Makes Sense

Your Dec. 2 editorial, “Bradford Regresses,” points to an extremely important principle on which this country was founded, and one I’d like to think our community practices on a regular basis. Fluoridation is a public health measure in which a tiny communitywide investment benefits everyone.

Maintaining an optimal amount of fluoride in water is based on the principle that decisions about public health should be based on what is healthy for the entire community, not based on a handful of individuals whose extreme fears are not backed by the scientific evidence.

Our society certainly respects individual rights, but every right has its boundaries. In America, there are certain policies we adopt communitywide or nationwide because they are cost-effective ways to strengthen health and security. Courts have consistently held that it is legal and appropriate for a community to adopt a fluoridation program.

It is completely unrealistic to make water fluoridation a person-by-person or household-by-household choice. The cost efficiency comes from a public water system fluoridating its entire supply.

It’s clear the science is on the side of fluoridation. Can’t we accept that fluoridation is also a highly cost-effective way for us to take care of all Bradford residents?

While the rest of the world is fretting about electromagnetic waves, genetically modified food and other perceived health threats associated with contemporary living, the town of Bradford, Vt., has taken a step back in time by rekindling a public health debate that we thought had been settled long ago — whether fluoride should be added to the municipal water supply …

Bradford — Opponents and supporters of fluoridating the town’s water supply came out in force last night as commission members defended and explained their recent decision to no longer fluoridate the water. Supporters of the decision by the Bradford Water and Sewer Commission cited concerns over negative health effects and involuntary ingestion of a chemical added to the water supply. …

There must be something in the water in Bradford, Vt., and we don’t mean fluoride. We refer to the fact that the town’s Water and Sewer Commission appears to be under the influence of something that has impaired its judgment and led it to ignore a central proposition of democratic government — that the public’s business must be transacted in …